Subject Knowledge And Understanding Education Essay Example

an examination of these theories based on a comprehensive understanding of their fundamental characteristics.The work of behaviorist psychologist Skinner is associated with conditioning through principles of stimulus and response and the law of positive reinforcement (Wood, 1988). The behaviorist approach to instruction, as defined by Alexander (2005 a: B), involves teaching children to absorb, replicate, and apply basic information and skills. However, this approach has limitations and is primarily used for knowledge transmission, demonstration, explanation, and illustration. It alone cannot guarantee deeper understanding, problem-solving, or creativity (Desforges 1995: 129).

My focus is on implementing the secondary curriculum for Urdu language classes at my placement school. I will be reviewing Unit 7 of the book "A Complete Guide for Urdu Examinations" by Zarina Khand (2003, 3rd edition). This book is used to teach Years 9 ;In my observation of a lesson from Unit 7, specifically the Weather unit, I noticed that the activities presented in this unit book follow a communicative approach. All four national curriculum attainment targets - listening, speaking, reading, and writing - are covered equally. Learning a foreign language is seen as a continuous and complex process.

The key ideas of Piaget discussed in this assignment focus on individual exploration in learning and the formation of "spontaneous consents" according to Vygotsky. Two important processes mentioned by Wood (1998) are "assimilation," which involves organizing understanding of the outside world, and "accommodation," which involves adapting understanding to social and physical constraints (p7). It is evident that Piaget's concept of staged development can be seen reflected in the UK national curriculum with its key stages (KS) and attainment levels.

On the other hand, Vygotsky represents a more specific social

constructivism perspective that emphasizes the socio-cultural aspect of learning and highlights the role of the "more experienced other." Burner extends social constructivism to modern languages by emphasizing their cultural nature in education. Burner also develops the concept of a "spiral" curriculum where education builds upon previous knowledge (Bigge and Shermis 1992: 140).The dominant approach in recent years has been Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). CLT emphasizes the use of language for meaningful purposes, authentic materials, communication, independence and creativity, responsiveness to individual needs and interests, and the role of the teacher as a facilitator rather than a controller (Mitchell 1994). This approach goes beyond teaching languages to include the importance of spoken language and 'oracy' in education. According to Bigge and Shermis (1992:254), understanding occurs when a subject recognizes how it can be used to achieve a goal or purpose. Research by GTCE (2005) revealed that students believe their learning experiences would improve if tasks were more closely aligned with their social environments both inside and outside the classroom. This analysis will explore the benefits of acquiring communicative classroom language in general and ways to meet individual students' unique learning needs. It is important to note that there cannot be one single theory or generalized understanding that fully captures the complexity of human interactions and dynamic situations. The observation of a classroom is influenced by the observer's specific intentions (Wragg 1994), therefore my pupil instructor may prioritize certain aspects of learning over others.The main focus is on developing subject knowledge and practical skills instead of traditional schooling and socialization. Both the textbook and my lesson plan introduce new ideas, vocabulary, and grammar in a communicative context

before asking students to create their own work. As a teacher, I guide and support students through the Key Stage 3 curriculum, specifically focusing on 'Weather'. At level 3, students should use standard phrases with minimal personal modification to discuss weather in their country. At level 6 or higher, they should use descriptive language, different sentence structures, and verb tenses. To achieve this, students must use grammatically correct language as it is essential for effective communication in any language. Additionally, students need a thorough understanding of word meanings and transitions to fully grasp messages and expand their vocabulary for written and oral communication. This can be accomplished by answering questions about presented transitions in written or spoken form through various activities.Incorporating the use of different tenses as a pathway to achieving higher levels of proficiency can extend the framework provided by my writing frame in a gifted and talented class. It is important to include activities that allow students to apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate their knowledge on a regular basis, according to Gwen Goodhew. In my lesson program, students are required to create their own piece of writing using their own ideas while practicing Goodhew's rules. The vocabulary covered in this lesson pertains to winter, summer, rain, and snowfall. G students will utilize this vocabulary to identify differences with the future tense in the text they have read. This approach encourages independent thinking and requires applying learned grammar skills for finding correct answers. Organizing the grammatical core with subject areas ensures contextualization and relevance to language usage (Turner cited in Pachler & Field, 2001:132).The author of the reviewed unit utilizes past and present tenses

frequently but neglects to incorporate the future tense, which could be easily included in a similar manner. For instance, examples of the present, past, and future tenses are as follows: "It is cold today," "Yesterday it was raining," and "There might be snow this evening." Concerning G students' usage of the future tense... If T materials were utilized in a specific category, I would encourage students to incorporate more of their own illustrations. By doing so, their work would advance from level 5 to level 6 or 7, enabling them to express themselves and convey opinions more effectively. Moreover, mentioning the four seasons can serve as an opportunity to discuss various geographical and cultural environments. This approach would allow for contemporary issues like cultural differences and recent current affairs to be explored while contextualizing activities to make them more relevant for learners. However, the material provides only superficial examples of cultural awareness that fail to provide substantial insight into Pakistan's beautiful conditions compared to English conditions. In the following cloze activity, students will describe weather conditions in locations such as Scotland, Lahore, and Manchester: [ and contents remain unchanged].Despite the communicative approach to language instruction emphasizing the importance of promoting interaction between students and the teacher, this chapter has lacked such activities. The aim of language instruction is to empower students in using sign language effectively for social communication (Pachler and Barnes, 2009:61). It is the responsibility of MFL teachers to select appropriate materials, provide opportunities for practicing listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, and enhance understanding of culture and structure. This chapter could have included more engaging activities that incorporate reading and writing. To

promote communication, activities involving listening and speaking through pair and group work will be included. Furthermore, a written question-and-answer activity as well as a paragraph-writing task comparing weather conditions in Pakistan and England have been incorporated. Visual aids such as images and photographs will also be used to initiate spoken discussions about what can be observed in them.Finally, there is a dialogue activity where students engage in conversation with a friend who has recently been on vacation in Pakistan. This activity allows students to practice their speaking skills while utilizing the provided questions.

According to the QCDA (2009), incorporating PLTS (Personal, Learning and Thinking Skills) into modern language education offers various opportunities for growth. The program of study for modern foreign languages provides an exciting range of possibilities to develop PLTS as an integral part of teaching and learning. These opportunities can be found in key concepts, key processes, range and content, as well as curriculum opportunities.

To enhance the skills of G (Gifted and Talented) students, I have designed a lesson plan that encompasses all aspects of PLTS. By using resources such as dictionaries and textbooks, students showcase their independent working abilities while determining the meaning of texts during the textbook starter activity. They also analyze grammar usage within these texts, displaying their creative thinking skills.

Collaboration within student groups enables them to assess what worked well in their individual tasks and share ideas and thought processes. This demonstrates their ability to work effectively as a team.

Furthermore, through explaining their own ideas for a creative activity and presenting them to peers, students gain confidence and learn how to take risks. This showcases their self-direction capabilities.The text emphasizes

the importance of effective engagement and reflective learning in promoting learner independence. It suggests that MFL trainee teachers can support capable and exceptionally able students by encouraging them to reflect on their learning strategies and practice using their new language. The use of ICT is also discussed, with the current material not meeting national curriculum standards. Pachler, Barnes, and Field (2009:313) recommend incorporating ICT into language activities to develop listening, speaking, reading, and independent learning skills. Integrating ICT would make these activities more relevant for students who regularly use technology in their education. The lesson plan includes a task that involves using ICT to create a video.This activity is specifically designed to accommodate visual and kinesthetic learners. In terms of numeracy, I have further enhanced it in my lesson program by incorporating numbers into sentences that relate to maximum and minimum temperatures:
U„U†O?U† U©U’ O¬U†U?O?U? O?U„O§U‚U?U? U…U?U? O°U?O§O?U?
In regards to teaching and learning schemes, this is an area that I would like to address in my own teaching. I find the term 'strategy' somewhat problematic as it is overused, carries connotations of management jargon, and tends to lose its explanatory value over time, like any 'buzzword'. However, its usefulness to educators may lie in its intent of guiding towards a long-term goal. In this context, the lesson begins with students reciting a paragraph in Urdu from memory about the weather. While rote learning is not typically used in communicative language teaching, this exercise serves to reinforce the language and develop familiarity as students repeatedly hear the phrases from their classmates. The use of competition can motivate students in a social and collaborative learning environment. Including

a video clip would be especially beneficial for visual learners but would also hold value for all students. Activities like this demonstrate the teacher's ability to create an engaging classroom atmosphere where students can participate in dialogues and enjoy themselves while learning.

Teaching and learning schemes

The lesson will involve completing a worksheet by filling in gaps in sentences. This structured framework will provide students with support in choosing the right words, rather than having to generate complete sentences on their own. By analyzing 'A big picture of the curriculum 2009' (QCDA: 2009), it is evident that this aligns with both PLTS and the "Every Child Matters" agenda in that it defines clear objectives that reflect national goals for education and student needs as individuals and citizens, promotes intellectual, personal, social, and physical development for all students, sets high expectations, broadening horizons and increasing aspirations, identifies outcomes related to knowledge, skills, and personal attitudes and qualities, and is grounded in clear values ( QCDA: 2009 ).

According to Norbert Pachler and Kit Field ( 2001 ), teaching grammar points in the target language is more effective when accompanied by physical presentation and visual aids. In this unit, I would use a tense timetable to explain the concept of time used in different tenses. Although knowledge about language is not emphasized in this unit, I would introduce grammatical rules through both inductive and deductive approaches. For the inductive approach , I would use the question and answer method , while for the deductive approach , I would provide simple grammar rules with examples . Understanding grammar is especially important in Urdu as it involves verb agreement with

gender and number of subjects.Some individuals find gaining knowledge of grammar to be a fascinating endeavor, deriving pleasure from consciously following rules. Personally, I derive great satisfaction from mastering the subjunctive in French and experience a sense of triumph when I am able to plan and say sentences like "Il faut que j'aille." However, it is important to note that this enjoyable activity does not equate to actual language acquisition, as stated by Krashen (1981:187).

To create cultural awareness, I would incorporate contextual elements related to both Pakistani conditions and conditions in England, addressing the past, present, and future. In order to achieve marks for AT1 and AT2, speaking and listening activities using the inquiry and reply method would be included. For AT3 & AT4, texts such as narratives would be introduced. To cater to visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners alike, visually stimulating activities like videos with contextualized images would also be incorporated. Additionally motivating activities such as reassembling text and oral presentations through conversation and dialogue would be included. Furthermore,various written activities in the target language would be introduced encouraging students to generate and respond to different types of written materials.

Overall,the critical analysis of this unit provided interesting insights into teaching and learning processes.The overall quality of the unit in terms of modern language instruction is lacking. Neglected aspects include teacher-student interaction, student-student interaction, VAK learning, and practical skills. The unit does not make it easy for teachers to engage students or facilitate independent and effective learning outcomes. The text briefly discusses four achievements without thorough examination. Grammar is crucial for Urdu scholars who also speak English. A lesson plan is included with this

assignment that focuses on improving students' understanding of various grammatical structures. After studying the unit, I realized the significance and applicability of the guidelines provided by the National Curriculum and National Strategies. It is essential for teachers to stay informed about recent research and ensure instructional materials meet students' needs effectively.